


A Runaway Bride and a Stranger

by afewmistakesago



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Rumbelle - Freeform, Rumbelle AU - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-30
Updated: 2015-07-04
Packaged: 2018-04-01 23:50:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4039381
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afewmistakesago/pseuds/afewmistakesago
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cursed!Storybrooke AU. Gaston was never turned in to a rose. Set a couple weeks after Rumplestiltskin wakes up, instead of Moe stealing from Gold. Annabelle “Annie” French is Regina’s personal assistant, and it’s her wedding day. When something inside her tells her it isn’t right, she runs from her own wedding. Outside of Granny’s diner, she sits, trying to clear her head. Rumplestiltskin had decided to talk a walk around the quiet town, and she decides she needs his company.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

It was her wedding day, and she wasn’t at her wedding. For as long as she could remember, Annie French had been planning her wedding. It would be held at the chapel, Dr. Archibald Hopper would officiate, Granny’s Diner would cater, and her father was coordinating flowers. Ruby Lucas was her best friend and her maid of honor, and her friends Ashley and Mary Margaret made up the rest of the party. It would be on Valentine’s Day. Her colors were navy and light green. Navy to compliment her own eyes, and the light green was her and her fiancées favorite color. Gabriel Smith had asked her to marry him eons ago. She could hardly remember his proposal, actually, but that hadn’t mattered to her before.

Years of working as Regina Mill’s personal assistant had finally paid off. Regina preferred Annie not to be seen, and she didn’t mind it. She stayed behind the scenes, mostly getting her coffee, scanning documents, or running her son Henry from school to various practices. Annie’s hours weren’t ever normal, but she supposed a mayor had a lot to do and not enough time to do it. She carefully saved her money and finally had enough to help Gabriel finance their wedding.

She had wanted it to be outside, but he thought bugs and the unpredictable weather would be an issue. She didn’t want to step on any toes, so she let Gabriel get his way. Her avoidance of confrontation also led her to invite every single town member to her wedding. Everyone except Emma Swan. She was new in town, and Annie supposed she could be someone’s plus one if they wanted to bring her. Graham had mentioned he might ask her to go with. That was fine, but she wasn’t especially fond of the loud newcomer. She seemed too different for Annie’s liking.

The French-Smith Valentine’s Day nuptials were circled on everyone’s calendar, and businesses were closing for the day so that shop owners and their customers could all attend. The so-called “event of the year” had arrived.

It was Annie’s one and only wedding day, but as she sat in the back room of the chapel that was her dressing room, everything inside of her screamed that she couldn’t and she shouldn’t go through with it. She shrugged the feeling off and let Ruby do her makeup, but her stomach was twisting and her head was beginning to pound.

“Rubes, it’s normal to be nervous, right?” Annie whispered, knowing how cliché that sounded.

“Yes, Annie. It is perfectly normal to be nervous,” Ruby smiled. “Now close your eyes, I think you messed up your mascara.”

“I would be afraid if you weren’t nervous, Annie,” said a new voice. Granny Lucas, Ruby’s grandmother and gracious organizer of all the food, had entered the room and she gave Annie a quick hug.

Mary Margaret bounced in with Ashley trailing close behind her. Ashley was a (very pregnant) vision in her light green dress, and Mary Margaret looked stunning in her navy dress. Annie had let them pick their own dresses, so she wouldn’t have to hear about it if she picked one they didn’t like.

“People are starting to arrive, Annie! I can’t believe today’s the day!” said Mary Margaret, beaming.

“Neither can I,” Annie admitted, touching her curled hair and reapplying her lip stick again. Her instincts were still telling her to flee the scene.

“Come on, girls, let’s give Annie a moment of peace and let her get her dress on. Let me know if you need my help zipping it up,” said Granny Lucas, ushering the waiting bridesmaids out of the dressing room.

Annie looked at her dress. It was a strapless A-line dress that was fairly form-fitting with a lacy design to her waist, and then it burst in to layers of chiffon. “It’s straight out of a fairytale,” thought Annie.

Thinking of fairytales made her think of Henry, her sweet little charge. He was always babbling about fairytales… his mother was the evil queen, his teacher was Snow White. When curiosity got the best of her, she had once asked him who she was. He told her he still wasn’t sure. She hadn’t thought much of it. Kids would be kids. He would be at the wedding with his mother. She hoped he got a piece of the cake, because she knew the chocolate she picked was his favorite. Hopefully Regina would be lenient on her strict sugar rules tonight.

Annie looked away from her dress and stared at herself in the mirror, catching sight of the Pinterest-inspired “Gabriel + Annabelle = True Love” sign that hung on the door. Gabriel had been in her life ever since she could remember. But it wasn’t right, really, that she couldn’t remember how Gabriel had proposed. When was it, exactly? Had it been fall? Were the leaves on the trees? She couldn’t seem to recall. Annie pulled out her phone and scrolled through the engagement photos they had done. Gabriel didn’t strike any strong emotions with her. It didn’t feel like love, really, it felt like a nice fondness. Could she go out there and declare herself to someone, for worse or for better, who she was simply fond of?

A knock at the door. Annie jumped.

“It’s me, babe,” came Gabriel’s strong voice through the door. “Can I come in?”

“It’s bad luck!” yelped Annie, reaching for her dress.

She heard him laugh. “We’re not superstitious, babe.”

“Still! Go away!”

Annie waited to hear his footsteps before she undid her robe and slid in to her wedding gown. She hated that he had just used “we” instead of “I’m”. Why was he always automatically assuming she agreed with everything he did? She could be super superstitious, for all he knew. Did he know her at all? Annie racked her brain, trying to think of things Gabriel wouldn’t know about her. Since they’d seemingly been together since the dark ages, she was sure he knew everything. It suddenly infuriated her. Wasn’t love supposed to be a mystery, a story to be uncovered? The novel’s she read when not on Regina’s watch had taught her that.

She couldn’t go through with it. She knew it. She looked down at her gorgeous dress, and felt a sob grow in her throat. So much time and money had gone in to an event she was about to ruin. Annie gathered the bottom of her dress in her hands, and snuck out the door. She ran as quickly (she did have a rather serious high heel problem) as she could to escape the chapel that was choking her. She took the back door of the church and got on to Main Street. Peeking around the corner, it seemed like everyone was gathered at the front of the church. She wondered how long they’d wait for her before sending someone in to find her. What was her father going to say? What was Gabriel going to say?

She supposed that didn’t matter anymore. She was now a runaway bride, after all. She just needed somewhere to run too.

-

Walking the town square while the entire town was at Annabelle French and Gabriel Smith’s wedding seemed like a good idea, originally. Rumplestiltskin had woken up when he heard Emma Swan’s name at Granny’s Inn a couple weeks earlier, but he was still waiting on everyone else. He was currently living with two histories, two minds, two stories – Mr. Gold and Rumplestiltskin. He had to, of course, keep up his Gold persona until Ms. Swan fully broke the town of its curse. Regina couldn’t know he knew what was really going on. It wasn’t hard to keep up the act, being snarky and feared wasn’t difficult to someone who had spent roughly three hundred years as the most feared wizard in all the realms.

The harshest reality of his double life was knowing his Belle was alive. After hearing Emma’s name, it all hit him. He knew who everyone really was, and he knew one “Annabelle” French was under the employment of the mayor. Hidden under Regina’s shadow, the girl ran from place to place and worked her hardest to keep Regina happy. She was mild-mannered and generally very polite, but Gold hadn’t often dealt with her. He normally went directly over her head to Regina, but he never went out of his way to be rude to her. Even cursed, he somehow couldn’t hurt the feelings of the girl everyone in town seemed to be friends with. He knew who her fiancée, was, too. He was the guy who Belle had been betrothed to; one Belle claimed no interest towards. He wondered how Regina had known to bring him here, and connect him to Belle. Probably just something extra she created to torture him a little, dangling his true love in front of him with a fiancée she would marry in this wretched Land Without Magic. In the few times he had seen ‘Annie’ since waking up, he found himself fixated on the simple engagement ring she wore.

His nightmares in his old realm, post-Belle, often ended with a flashback to Regina in the Dark Castle, smiling as she said “she died”. He woke often, in a cold sweat, wishing he could go back and change his actions towards her. The small flicker of light in his life, the one who seemed determined enough to see through the elaborate Dark One façade he worked hard to build. His Belle. He was so sure she was gone. Regina had lied, and once the town was awake, she would need to be punished. It would be a race between him and the townspeople, he was sure. Either way, Regina would suffer for making him think Belle was dead.

Rumplestiltskin was walking along the road with his cane as he noticed her. On the bench outside Granny’s Diner was the figure of a small girl in a big white dress. It couldn’t be her. He had been trying to avoid ‘Annie’ to say anything brash or that he would regret, or to ‘accidentally’ double her fiancée’s rent. As he walked closer, it was definitely his Belle. She sat with her hair perfectly set, clothed in her wedding dress. She looked stunning. She looked sad. Her makeup was ruined by mascara that streaked down her face.

She hadn’t noticed him, and he was planning on keeping it that way. He began to turn back before she could see him, but he stepped on a glass someone had left laying on the ground. She looked up from her gaze that was set on nothing, and placed her eyes on him.

“Hi, Mr. Gold. Don’t mind me, please, I’m just having a break down on this bench,” Annie said, looking at him and laughing.

“Uh – I’m sorry. I’ll just go,” he said, quickening his pace and walking passed her.

“No! Mr. Gold, don’t go,” she said, her laughter growing, “I don’t know why I picked this bench. But everyone’s in the church and I thought I could sit and think here for a moment, and clear my head.”

He stopped. Against his better judgment, he returned and sat down on the bench, as far away from her as he could manage. He let her laugh, and didn’t immediately question why she wasn’t at her wedding. The wedding she’d been carefully planning for 28 years. He had been invited, actually, but it wouldn’t be any fun to go to that, so he RSVP’d no and sent an anonymous donation of money that was “for Annabelle: for books”.

“Why didn’t you come to our engagement party?” Annie suddenly inquired, after her laughter had ended. She looked at Rumplestiltskin inquisitively. “It had half the invite list of the wedding, you know.”

“I just don’t think many people enjoy my company, Ms. French,” said Rumplestiltskin, trying to keep as cool as he could with her looking at him like that.

“I think I know why you didn’t come. You’re lonely. But you’re afraid of crowds. And everyone says you’re rude, but you’ve never been rude to me,” said Annie, looking at him thoughtfully.

He didn’t know how to reply. Rumplestiltskin and Mr. Gold were both very difficult people to love, but they both had a soft spot for her.

“Why didn’t you go to your own wedding?” he shot back at her. He didn’t mean to be mean to her, his Belle, but Gold’s attitude got the best of him.

She broke her gaze on him and looked down at the road.

“Because I don’t love Gabriel,” she said. “It felt nice to say that,” she continued, “I don’t love Gabriel. I don’t loooove Gabriel.”

Rumplestiltskin felt himself smile. ‘Annie’ didn’t love her fiancée. When Belle woke up, Rumplestiltskin was very positive that he didn’t know what to tell her besides a massive apology and a thousand “I love you’s”. He hadn’t thought in his wildest dreams that she was truly alive, and he wasn’t prepared at all for her to enter his life again. He had spent years mourning her, only to wake up in Storybrooke to see she had always been there. If she, for some reason, decided to stay with the monster he was, he would have to make her leave him. He didn’t deserve her.

She began to talk again. If talking like this to him was somehow helping ‘Annie’ feel better, then he wouldn’t stop it.

“I can’t remember how long we’ve been together. Being with him is just so simple, so normal. I need something more challenging, you know? Someone who keeps me guessing. There’s nothing to guess about Gabriel. I’ve been thinking,” she said, lowering her voice, “that after this blows over and I apologize to the right people, I’ll finally move away from Storybrooke.”

“If that’s what you want, dearie,” he offered in reply to her confession. Hopefully, Emma could break the curse before she tried leaving town. He didn’t want to have to stand watch at the town line for her, as nothing good ever happened to people who left.

She nodded.

“You don’t think I’m a terrible person, do you?”

“No. I think… I think it was very brave of you, Annie.”

Bravery had always been his Belle’s favorite thing.

“Thank you, Mr. Gold,” Annie said, with a small smile. “As they say, do the brave thing and bravery will follow.”

That was certainly his Belle shining through this Annie.

“Well… I’ll stop bothering you,” said Rumplestiltskin, beginning to rise. It wasn’t his place to comfort her right now. She needed a friend.

“No,” she said, reaching for his arm, “Please stay.”

He paused at her touch.

“Yes, of course I’ll stay.”

They sat in silence for a while. She alternated between crying and laughing, surely the effect of the conflicting emotions she had. He simply sat and hoped it was somehow a comfort to her.

“You know,” she sniffed, “the clock is working again. I can’t remember the last time I saw it move, and it’s been moving the whole time I’ve been sitting here.”

He was about to reply something witty about the speed of mechanics in Storybrooke, but suddenly a Storybrooke Police car was in front of them. Emma Swan stepped out. Lovely.

“Annabelle? Are you alright?” said Emma, approaching slowly. Rumplestiltskin knew he threw her off her guard and that she wasn’t sure if he could trust him yet, just how he wanted her to be.

“Yes, Emma, I’m fine,” Belle said, standing. Leaves had gotten caught in the bottom of her dress, and she brushed them out.

“Gold, you don’t have anything to do with this, right?” Emma questioned, looking between the pair in front of her.

“Not sure what you mean, Ms. Swan.”

“No, Emma, Mr. Gold has nothing to do with me running out on my own wedding. I decide what I do and how I feel,” Annie said, with a note of finality in her voice. Rumplestiltskin was thankful he had found an ally in Annie. “Could you drive me back to the chapel? I have to apologize to… a lot of people.”

Emma nodded. “You don’t want to get married; you don’t have to get married.”

She opened the passenger door for Annie, and gave Rumplestiltskin a small wave goodbye. Annie smiled at him before getting in the car.

It wasn’t a lot of progress, but it was enough. He was proud of his Belle for beginning to emerge in Annie’s mild persona. Wheels were beginning to turn all around in Storybrooke. Emma would break the curse, Regina could be taken care of, and he could start his quest for his son. If his clever girl decided to stick with him… he just might have to let her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In a flashback, Annabelle visits Gold at the shop, looking for a special gift. In present day Storybrooke, Gold and Regina meet for dinner. Regina forces Gold to reveal he knows who he truly is - Rumplestiltskin. Later, a surprise visit from Annie leaves Gold feeling more and more hopeful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think! Also, I think this story needs a new name. Please let me know if you have any ideas.

His shop didn’t get many visitors. When people did somehow end up in Mr. Gold’s Pawn Shop, they normally just stuttered nervously when he appeared at the counter and backed out of the shop. The ones brave enough to stay always had specific requests for items, which he could normally procure. For a price, of course. Others came in to question raises in rent, or give excuses as to why rents could not be paid. He made deals and he kept them. If someone couldn’t live up to their end of the bargain, consequences ensued. The items in the shop were unusual, and Mr. Gold didn’t expect the townsfolk of Storybrooke had the ability to appreciate them. Tinkering with items that found themselves in his possession was a hobby, whereas owning the town was a full-time job.

Nobody, however, entered the shop just to peruse the shelves and purchase things that caught their fancy. Why would they?

One morning, Mr. Gold found himself in the back room when he heard the bell on the entrance jingle. He rolled his eyes, wondering who needed extra time on the rent this week. Luckily for them, he was in a good mood since a set of rare jewels had just come in, so he just might let them slide by without reprimanding them. Stepping out to the counter, he found Annabelle French looking at a display curiously.

Hmm. Annabelle had never been late on her rent before. Was she here to bargain for her father, the flower shop owner? What a horrid move, to send her here to make a deal. Could Moe French really not face him?

Annabelle had not noticed his presence in the room, it seemed. He cleared his throat, and she started at the sound, turning to smile at him. She went back to looking at whatever had caught her eye.

That was odd. She wasn’t scared of him.

Then again, she had no reason to be. They had never really interacted, now that he thought about it. She was Regina’s personal assistant, but he always went above her and contacted Regina directly. She was always polite when she was at Regina’s house at the same time he was. Annabelle had never given him a reason to be bad-mannered to her, unlike most of the people in Storybrooke. However, that didn’t mean Gold liked that she wasn’t nervous around him. 

“Anything I can help you with, Ms. French?” he finally said, after staring at her questioningly for a moment. She hadn’t asked for anything yet.

“Mmm,” she said, clapping her hands together, “just looking for a birthday gift for Henry.”

“The convenience store didn’t have anything?” he replied, appearing vaguely annoyed at her reason for shopping.

“Everything there felt ordinary. I think Henry deserves something better. He’s getting so big,” Annabelle confided, smiling cheerily. 

Gold knew it was the boy’s birthday soon. He could still remember the day he had called to arrange the adoption for Regina. He had also received a party invitation in the mail, but threw it in the trash. It was far too bright and cheery and parties were not his forte.

“Well, then, I might suggest something from this rack,” he said, pointing her to a small display of sports cards. “You can’t find those anywhere else in Maine,” he continued, sounding smug.

“You think he would like these?” she said, grabbing a deck and walking to stand opposite him at the counter, setting the deck on the counter for him to look at.

He was at a loss for words for a moment. Annabelle French was easily the most beautiful women in Storybrooke. He had always known it in the back of his head, but now the thought and the woman herself was standing directly in front of him. Gold was frustrated with himself; he had yet to give her some reason not to come back to the shop again and now he was here dumbfounded by her looks. Was it a full moon? That could be the only reasoning behind his rash thoughts. That, or he was really beginning to lose his grip. He needed to start doing those Sudoku puzzles, or whatever it was people did to keep their minds sharp.

Customers from Storybrooke were a nuisance, really. Part of him wanted to be kind to Annabelle, foolishly thinking for a moment that could lead to an eventual friendship. He smiled at the thought. A friend. As if he needed a friend. Gold couldn’t truly identify the memory (years had passed, so that was normal, he assumed), but he remembered loving a woman with similar features to Annabelle and being abandoned by her. It had made him bitter and angry at the world. All he needed was himself, because the addition of a pretty brunette to his life would be messy. He didn’t need the emotions he had worked hard to tuck away returning. 

“I’ll take your silence as a yes,” Annabelle said with a small laugh, “how much do I owe you?” 

She was digging in to her purse for her wallet when he made a startling choice.

“On the house,” he said firmly.

“R-really?” 

“Yes. Just do me one favor.”

Now it was Annabelle’s turn to look puzzled. Did she really want to make a deal with the man everyone feared?

“Go on, Mr. Gold,” she replied cautiously. 

“Don’t come back here.”

“Why not? You have so many fascinating things, so many stories, surely, but you never tell them. I’m just curious,” Annabelle said, sounding hopeful. Like he would let her in despite the firm walls that blocked everyone else out.

“I’m not looking to share my business with the world, Ms. French,” Gold replied, not giving her any answers. The conversation was over.

Any retaliation Annabelle might have was cut short when Leroy came in, mumbling drunkenly about a raise in the rent. Gold sighed, and Annabelle gave him a small nod before taking the deck of cards from the counter and exiting the shop.

The day after Henry’s party, which Gold did not attend, she slipped a note under the door, thanking him again for the complimentary gift and assuring him Henry loved the cards. Annabelle never entered the shop again, but Gold occasionally saw her peeking in when she passed it on her way to other places. Additionally, she would always wave when she saw him, like they were some kind of acquaintances. The first time she waved, he was so surprised that he found himself waving back, like an idiot. The next times, he would only offer a scowl in return before trying to avoid eye contact, but she always smiled at him. They had a few conversations at various events after the shop encounter, but it was still surprising to find an invitation with scrolling calligraphy in his mailbox one afternoon. It gave him the details of an engagement party and a save-the-date for a wedding. No, that was certainly not going to be attended by him.

What an odd girl.

-  
Dinner at the mayor’s household was not high on Rumplestiltskin’s list of priorities. He really just wanted to figure out who the stranger with the motorcycle was, before he took Emma Swan away with him. Rumplestiltskin knew everyone. Names were his game, but he had yet to hear the mysterious man’s name. Regina’s call insisting he come over was annoying, but the games between them must continue, so there he was at her table.

“Don’t you have a deputy to be terrorizing?” he said starkly. 

Regina smirked from across the table.

“No, no, dear, I always have time for you,” she replied, “and I have a very specific reason for asking you over tonight.”

“Need some parenting advice? I’ve not a clue how to help with your son hating you.”

She sighed, but smiled at him.

“My assistant didn’t get married. Do you know why that is?”

He shrugged. “Lots of brides get cold feet, Regina.”

“Emma said she found you two together. What did you say to Annie?”

“Nothing, to be honest. She just wanted company as she cried.”

“And she chose you as her company? Of all people?”

“I assure you, dear, I had nothing to do with the cancellation of her wedding.”

It was wrong of him to be so internally delighted that the wedding was cancelled, but he had to appear nonchalant to Regina.

“It would be a shame if something happened to Annie, don’t you think?”

He stiffened. “What did you do?”

“I haven’t done anything yet,” she said smoothly, “but I can think of a couple ways to ruin her life.”

“Why would you want to do that, Regina? She’s been a good enough assistant to you.”

“She has,” Regina said, looking down at the phone she had in front of her, “and she’s just dropped Henry off at the movies! I suspect she’ll be back at her home soon. It would be a shame if she was evicted.”

“I’ve no reason to evict her,” he said, trying to remain calm. What on earth was Regina doing?

“Really? I’ve got some papers upstairs accusing her of tax evasion, fraud, identity theft,” she said coyly. 

His mind was working quickly, trying to figure out what Regina’s plan was. Hurting Belle would serve her no purpose if she didn’t know Gold knew who she really was. 

“Don’t, Regina,” he said finally.

“I don’t want too, honestly, but if that doesn’t work… her heart would look nice in my vault,” she whispered, her voice lowering dramatically.

Gold choked on the water he had been drinking.

“It doesn’t have to be this way. Just tell me one thing,” she said, returning her voice to a normal level, like this was a normal conversation.

He raised his eyebrows, and she sighed.

“What’s your name?”

“Easy. Mr. Gold.”

“What’s your real name?” she pushed.

“Mr. Gold.”

She suddenly rose from her chair and opened a box she had sitting on a chair near them. She carefully lifted a small, chipped, white cup with a painted blue flower on it.

“How did she get that,” he wondered quickly, watching as she moved towards his chair. He felt himself begin to panic, and knew Regina would get the answer from him. He had plenty of questions for her about why she had lied about Belle’s death, but he wouldn’t allow her to hurt Belle in this world. Rumplestiltskin had hurt her enough in the Dark Castle, actions he had taken that he regretted every day. There was no need for Belle to face anymore pain in the Land Without Magic.

Regina began to toy with the teacup carelessly, and he reached out his hand to take it from her. She stepped away. 

“You still care about this little thing,” she said with a smirk.

He shook his head and reached for it again, but she held the treasured object just out of reach.

“Not so fast, Mr. Gold,” Regina whispered, “what’s your name, in other realms and times?”

“Rumplestiltskin,” he admitted. It sounded horrid coming off his lips again. 

She smiled contently.

“Glad we’re on the same page,” she said, tossing him the chipped teacup he held so dear.

Rumplestiltskin stood from his chair abruptly after securing the teacup, and he headed towards the door. He was done here. Regina followed.

“So lovely to catch up with you, Gold. I’ve got some business to attend to with Kathryn, now, but I do hope we can talk again. Soon,” she said, and with that she shut the front door in his place.

Rumplestiltskin wondered what would happen with Kathryn, probably nothing good. He had heard the woman slapped Mary Margaret that afternoon for having an affair with her husband. Though, how good of a wife wouldn’t know her husband was in the local hospital as a John Doe? He didn’t care, really, these fake personas on people he used to know tired him. He did find them amusing, now that he knew who they really were. Regina couldn’t be happy that Snow and Charming had indeed found each other again, but he hoped she didn’t do anything stupid. Regina would lose. Emma Swan had come to break the curse. 

-  
Later that day, Rumplestiltskin was repositioning the teacup in its designated spot in his back room. He heard the door bell ring, and he loudly said, “does the closed sign mean nothing?”

Small footsteps headed towards the back room, and Annabelle French poked her head through the curtain.

“Is now a bad time?” she said, fully stepping in to the room. He could see she had brought a to-go bag from Granny’s with her.

“I brought some dinner, for the two of us, if you’re interested…” she continued softly, watching him carefully, like she was waiting to see if he would erupt.

He didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t have this not-Belle so close to him. He couldn’t turn her away, not before he knew what she wanted to say. At least he knew Regina didn’t evict her or try to press any false charges on her.

“Um,” he said distractedly, hyper-focusing on the teacup in front of him, “sure. Set the food down on the table. I’ll be over in a minute.”

He took a deep breath before joining her at the table.

“Sorry there’s no chairs,” he said, as she spread out the food she had brought over. He noticed her hand was free of the engagement ring it had bore for so long. Rumplestiltskin smiled at that.

“It’s – it’s fine. I didn’t tell you I was coming,” Belle said quickly.

“Why did you come?” Rumplestiltskin inquired. He was truly curious. 

“I couldn’t think of anywhere else to go, really. My dad is mad at me, my friends are mad at me, there’s no way Gabriel could sit through a meal with me, even Henry’s at the movies…” she said, biting her lip nervously. “I know we agreed I wouldn’t come here, but, I just thought, I’m sorry…”

“It’s fine,” he confirmed. “Thank you for bringing me dinner, Ms. French.”

“Please, call me Annie,” she said, sounding hopeful for some reason.

“Okay, Annie,” he said with a smile. He couldn’t help himself.

They ate in silence for a while. How strange it was to have two dinners, after forgetting to eat so often. He didn’t really need to as the Dark One. Magic was his sustenance in that form. He had recently begun to skip meals, being so busy scheming and plotting after waking up that eating didn’t seem like a necessity.

“You seem chipper, for someone who just cancelled her own wedding,” he said finally.

She blushed. “I feel… freed, for some reason. Lighter. Happier.”

He nodded. “Ending a bad relationship can do that.”

She looked at him curiously. “You’ve been in a relationship?”

“I’m full of surprises, Annie… But yes. I was married, once. Fell in love again after that, too.”

She looked surprised. 

“What happened to them? The people you loved?”

He met her eyes and sadly replied, “they died.”

It wasn’t a lie. He had killed Milah, his first wife that Gold had been vaguely aware of, and Belle had been dead to Rumplestiltskin for some time. Alive in his memories, dead in reality. Or so he thought.

Her face twisted into sympathy. “Oh, Mr. Gold, how terrible! I’m so sorry! That explains why-” she stopped herself from ending her sentence.

“Explains why I’m so bitter,” he said with a knowing look.

She nodded. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine. It’s true.”

“You know,” she said thoughtfully, “I was supposed to be on my honeymoon right now.”

Rumplestiltskin looked up from the burger he had been eating and watched her expression. She seemed wistful. Surely, she’d rather be at some beach right now than eating with him in his cramped room. However, her and Gabriel probably wouldn’t have gotten far over the town line without something making them turn back. He began to wonder what they would’ve done then. Probably rented a house with an ocean-view and spent their days lounging there. The thought made him uncomfortable. He realized she was waiting on a response from him.

“And you’re here with me. My deepest apologies,” he said dryly.

She laughed. “You might not be the most popular guy in town, but I think you’re nice. You’re just hiding underneath your fancy suits. You’re not the monster people think you are.”

“It’s definitely the suits that scare people off,” he said, nodding seriously.

They returned to their comfortable silence. Rumplestiltskin wondered why Annabelle had always been so kind to him, even in the depths of his Mr. Gold days. A walking mystery, she was. He wondered if his Belle would be so kind once she knew who he really was. Who she really was. From what he knew Annabelle French was a well-liked townsperson, who didn’t go against the grain. She was perfectly normal, obedient, and sometimes a pushover. Belle was more daring, with a fierce and fearless side to her. He supposed Regina could’ve done a lot worse with her cursed personality, but he was glad he could tell it was fading in her. 

Before he could ponder his next moves with this delicate situation, Annie’s phone rang.

She grimaced, and answered quickly.

“Hey, Regina…. Yes, I’ll do that. Of course. No, I’m not at home. I’m out. Just with a friend. I’ll be there in a minute.”

She pressed ‘end’ on the call and gave Gold a “what can you do?” look, and shrugged.

“I have to go. Regina wants me to go look something up in the town charter for her.”

“Pity,” he said, unsure of how to say goodbye to her.

“I’m used to her stepping all over me, but recently she’s been a bit much,” she said with a shrug, clearing the food containers in to the trash can Gold had nearby.

They walked slowly to the shop door, and she offered him a parting smile as she walked off.

“Until next time, Mr. Gold!”

He hoped, more than anything that Emma Swan would finally begin to believe, and he could call ‘Annabelle’ Belle the next time they encountered each other.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In a flashback, Mr. Gold sees Annie inquiring about the library to Gabriel’s dismay. He’s surprised to find out the couple is engaged, given some noticeably wrong behavior he sees. Despite his inner conflict, he decides not to intervene in the couple’s affairs. In present day, Annie goes to Mr. Gold after an upsetting encounter with her ex-fiancee. Rumplestiltskin realizes Belle’s true curse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m moving the rating of this story up for implied physical and emotional abuse. Nothing is described in detail, but it is mentioned.

It was bitingly frigid afternoon in Maine, and Mr. Gold was shuffling as quickly as he could with his cane to get to the diner for a cup of coffee and the Lucas family’s various dues. He had just finished his early round of rent-collecting. Granny’s Diner was his next stop, and the perfect place to take a break. It was the time of morning where the breakfast crowd had left, and the lunch crowd hadn’t yet arrived, so there shouldn’t be too many people there. Perfect. He preferred to sit at one of the stools by the counter, but if he was a particularly foul mood he would occupy a whole booth and only order one cup of coffee. Today could be one of those days, he thought as he grabbed a copy of the Storybrooke Mirror from the display they had next to a mail box. Might as well catch up on whatever drivel was happening in the world and sit for a bit. Multiple people could not pay their rents in full this month, and his ankle was killing him, a dynamic duo that soured his disposition.

He was walking passed the closed library when she caught his eye. Dressed stylishly for the weather in a purple pea coat, Annie French was looking in to the library through the wooden slats that boarded its windows. It had been months (or was it a year, he never could remember dates) since Annie had entered his shop and gotten the gift for Henry. Henry wasn’t with her now, instead her boyfriend Gabriel Smith, a particularly unimpressive grocery store manager, stood behind her, impatiently tapping his foot. Gold slowed his speed to hear the conversation they were having.

“Do you remember how long it’s been closed?” Annie questioned, looking in at various angles to the old building.

“No, babe,” he said, sounding irritated. “Let’s go, nobody cares about the library anymore.”

She gave a “hmmph” kind of noise and continued around to look in through the other windows.

Mr. Gold surprised himself and stepped in to the conversation. “The library’s been closed for several years due to lack of funding,” he said to Annie, who turned from the covered window and smiled at him.

Annie possessed a charming smile. Mr. Gold knew he shouldn’t be thinking about it, but she interested him much more than the scantily clad Ruby or the shy school teacher Mary Margaret. He encountered them as much as he encountered Annie, but both had made snide comments towards him when he collected their rents. Annie always had hers ready in an orderly envelope, and always in the correct amount, and she never gave him any problems. Mr. Gold pulled himself together as Annie pursed her lips in disappointment. He couldn’t get involved with her, so he wasn’t sure why he was bothering to talk to her. He was the one who had pushed her away from him when she tried to befriend him. Gabriel had taken a step closer to her and put a possessive hand on the small of her back.

“That’s so sad,” Annie said, frowning. “I love to read.”

Mr. Gold shrugged. “That’s life.”

Annie crossed her arms. “There’s got to be a way to get it opened again.”

Gabriel shifted uncomfortably, lost in the conversation. Mr. Gold was formulating a response to let her down gently, because there was no way Mayor Mills would spend money on a library, and Gabriel took the brief silence as his chance to get moving.

“Annie, we’re going to be late to Gus’ potluck. Come on,” he said, grabbing her wrist forcefully and moving away from the library. He was holding her a little too tightly for Gold to let it go unnoticed.

Annie obliged to moving away from the library after being jolted forward by his firm grip on her. She nodded her head at Gold as a goodbye, and then pulled her wrist away from Gabriel’s hold on her, rubbing her wrist tenderly as they walked on toward their destination. Gold was at a stand-still as he watched the couple walk away, and he felt torn. He really hadn’t liked how Gabriel had touched Annie. It wasn’t his business how he treated her, he wasn’t technically “friends” with Annie, but….

Something in him tugged as he returned to walking to Granny’s Diner. He wouldn’t get involved in their relationship, per say, but the couple didn’t live together (“yet,” he thought). Perhaps Gabriel’s building would require loud renovations, directly over his bedroom. No, because he could just move in with Annie then. He wanted to drive them apart, but even with his power he couldn’t just break them up. He could inflict a new nuisance in to Gabriel’s life, at least. Annie was a smart girl who deserved better, but if she thoughtlessly stuck with him (some relationships were difficult to escape, he knew), Gabriel could at least be miserable. His whole building was about to be bothered, actually. The rent was going up, again. How tragic. 

He arrived at Granny’s Diner, taking up a corner booth and spreading out the newspaper in front of him. Annie’s troubles slipped his mind, and he read up on local news and felt his mouth drop as one article caught his eye.

“Mr. Maurice French announces the engagement of his daughter, Annabelle “Annie” Rose French, to Gabriel Ellis Smith, son of Jack and Elaine Smith. Ms. French works for the city of Storybrooke, and Mr. Smith works at the Storybrooke Grocery. No date has been set.” 

Mr. Gold shook his head, pushing the paper away. He shouldn’t have let himself get involved, even briefly. How had he not noticed a ring on her finger? Never mind that, really, it was foolish of him to even try to interfere with them, even with something as silly as a rent raise for her now-fiancée. Annie was a perfectly bright girl, and if Gabriel made her happy, there was nothing he could do. It was troubling how Annie made him lose his normal style of sarcasm and snark in response to human interactions. She was not his friend. She was not anything to him. Mr. Gold decided to keep himself at an even further distance from now on. No more stopping for polite conversation. No more smiling if she waved to him in passing. 

It did not go unnoticed, however, when the newly engaged couple and he were at the park the next day. Mr. Gold was trying to walk out the pain in his ankle, which some idiot doctor had advised. As Annie and Gabriel passed him, Mr. Gold’s eyes were directed at Annie’s hand, which was entwined with Gabriel’s. Despite his hands covering most of hers, he could see the purple and green that surrounded her wrist.

“It’s not my place,” he intoned mentally as he went on his way. 

-  
The man named August W. Booth was a big waste of time. He had rolled in to Storybrooke, and he knew the truth about who everyone was. He even pretended to be Baelfire. Baelfire, the reason Rumplestiltskin had needed the bloody curse to be cast in the first place. Rumplestiltskin was enraged as he stormed back to the shop. He needed to smash something, needed to feel something crushed in his hand. 

He ignored the rain that poured from the sky. He ignored the pedestrians that gave him shaky waves. They’d all seen him angry before, yes, but this was a new level of rage. He was in utter disbelief that his “Bae” had found him, then that small moment of amazement was ripped from him as he realized the lie. Entering the shop, he was dripping wet. He searched the shelves, looking for something made of an easily-broken glass. Similar to when he had sent Belle away, he was angry at himself and the world and his curse and everything that tortured him. He tormented himself the most.

He heard a sniffle. Jumping, he whirled around to try and figure out who was in his shop.

“Come out, dearie,” he said. His old habits were coming back fast, but he needed to keep up Mr. Gold’s personality. 

From a darkened corner, Annie French appeared. Her clothes were soaked through. Her wet hair clung to her face, and her arms wrapped around herself protectively. She was shivering, and it looked like she had been crying. She was opening her mouth like she wanted to speak, but she as soon as she started to talk, she began to shake with sobs.

Rumplestiltskin acted quickly, dropping his cane to limp hurriedly to the back room to get a folding chair and a blanket. He got back to her, wrapped the blanket around her shoulders and helping her sit in the chair. She hadn’t said anything yet, but he was ready to wait for whatever she had to say.

For once, he was thankful he had kept a small coffee pot in his shop. He always preferred Granny’s coffee (which he would never tell her), but he quietly made a pot as Annie collected herself. She looked so small underneath the blanket, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand occasionally. When the coffee was done, he gave her a mug of it and leaned against the counter of the shop, ready for her to talk whenever.

She took a few sips, and then drew in a large, shaky breath. “I went back to my old apartment today,” she whispered.

He watched her with wide eyes, nodding gently.

“Gabriel was there, and, uh, he had been… drinking,” she said, her voice barely audible. 

Neither Mr. Gold nor Rumplestiltskin knew Gaston/Gabriel had a drinking problem. That couldn’t be good. Mr. Gold’s memories provided Rumplestiltskin with the time he had seen Gabriel force Annie away from talking to him, and he gasped.

“Did he hurt you, Annie?” he said, dropping to his knees to be at her eye level.

She shook her head, beginning to cry again. “No, he didn’t…. he didn’t hurt me. He just called me some awful words, and he tried to get me, but I threw a book at his head,” she said.

Rumplestiltskin paused. She had thrown a book at him. Gabriel had probably never read a book in his life. How ingenious of Annie. It was truly something Belle would do in times of danger, resort to books - whether it be by the knowledge within them, or as a physical weapon.

“But, did he ever hurt you?” he pushed, seeking a reason to call Sheriff Swan on the man he was growing less and less inclined to ever like.

Annie’s hands were now tightly clenched fists. “Only a few times… it was all accidents, mostly when he had been drinking,” she admitted finally.

He shook his head in disbelief. How could he hurt her, the loveliest woman in the world? Gabriel was an idiot, to have this perfect woman to hold and comfort and love. Gabriel had that privilege, and he hurt her. It made sense now - this was Belle’s cursed life. To be submissive to Gabriel out of fear, to be passive and agreeable to everyone because she dreaded being harmed or caught in a crossfire.

“Don’t get him in trouble, Mr. Gold, really, I’m sure he didn’t mean to hurt me, he always apologized and said he loved me,” she said quickly. They were both surprised by the tears that sprung to his eyes. He got up from his knees and stretched, telling himself not to cry before leaning against the counter again, not meeting her distressed eyes.

“I just don’t know why someone would ever want to hurt you, Annie,” he said softly to her. “Tell me what happened.”

She could be brave and tell him. She swallowed with some difficulty before beginning. “I just went back to get the last of my things. I’m living with Ruby, for now,” she explained.

He nodded, and she continued. “He hasn’t been there all the other times. I make sure to go when he’s at work… but, this time, he was waiting for me. There were empty beer bottles all over the kitchen, and he was at the table… I tried to walk out when I saw him, but he told me to stay, or else.”

She paused here, and Rumplestiltskin muttered, “that imbecile”.

Annie gave half a smile at his comment, and went on with her story, “So, I kind of walked towards the table and asked if he had been drinking too much again, and he told me he had never had a problem, and if he did, it was my fault. It was my fault that he drank so much, because I left him. He said I was unfaithful, untrustworthy, asked if I had been seeing other people… I said no. I hadn’t, I just didn’t want to marry him anymore. He threw a beer can right next to me, and I jumped away, and he laughed, but it was scary laugh, like a villain from a movie…” she said, trailing off to take a deep breath.

“I told him I was just there to get my bag, and I began to walk back to the stairs. He got up from the table, called me a bitch, told me I wasn’t worth anything,” she said, spitting out the derogatory term like a poison on her lips, “and he kept moving closer and closer to me, saying horrible things, saying nobody else was going to want me, and he got too close and I panicked, Mr. Gold. I reached for the dictionary I kept on the mantle for display, and I threw it at him, and he fell back, and I ran out the door and didn’t look back. He was so drunk he was already stumbling when he walked towards me, but I knocked him out.”

Rumplestiltskin took this news in, closing his eyes, accepting her words. He was silently fuming, but didn’t let her see his inner rage. Gabriel would have to pay for these actions. He had hurt one of the people Rumplestiltskin cared for the most in his life. He abused her. Annie’s eyes were watering again, and she said, “This was the first place I thought of to go, for some reason…”

He leaned back and looked at the ceiling, away from her sad eyes. “That was really the best thing you could’ve done, Annie. He could’ve really hurt you. I’m glad you came here.”

She pushed her hair behind her ear nervously. “You don’t mind? This is twice I’ve cried in front of you, you know,” she said with a small laugh.

“I don’t mind at all. I’m calling Sheriff Swan. He made threats towards you, and it won’t stand.”

“Won’t I get in trouble? I hurt him, you know…”

He shrugged. “If you say you didn’t hurt him, and he was truly drunk, then who is he to say you hurt him? He probably doesn’t even remember it.”

Annie’s eyes widened. “You want me to lie to the police?” she said, her voice scandalized.

“Not lying, dear, just…. Leaving out the truth. I’m sure Ms. Swan wouldn’t care if you’d hurt him, either way, he should be punished. Not you.”

Rumplestiltskin reached for the cane he had dropped earlier, and moved to the phone he had at the shop. Annie uncovered herself from the blanket, and stood next to him as he made the call. Sheriff Swan was going to check Gabriel’s status at the house and take him in, and would call Annie to question her as soon as he was behind bars. Gabriel had silently threatened Annie for long enough.

“Can I drive you to Ms. Lucas’ house? I don’t think it’s still raining, but I don’t want you walking,” he said, as they tried to figure out what to do next. “You should get some dry clothes.”

She nodded gratefully. “That would be wonderful.”

They exited the shop to his car, and he drove in silence. Annie hummed along to the radio, and pointed out the rainbow that crossed the sky. “It’s not such an ugly day, now,” she said with a smile.

“I guess not,” he said as they pulled up to the Lucas’ household. “I’ll see you around, Annie.”

She stepped out the passenger’s seat, and thanked him again for the ride.

“And thank you, for you know, being my friend… thank you for the blanket, the coffee, listening to me,” she listed, and he wasn’t sure if she was bashful or embarrassed as blushed, counting on her fingers the things he had done for her. 

“Of course, dear. And after all that, you didn’t even get your bag?”

She shook her head, and with a final “good-bye” she closed the door. He watched her get in to the house safely, and he pulled out of the driveway. It seemed he had a stop to make.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In a flashback, Annie has an odd request for Mr. Gold. In the present, Ruby questions Annie’s mental state and someone gifts Annie the key to the library. Rumplestiltskin and Annie look around the library together. Henry freaks out when he realizes Regina’s made something for Emma using apple. Curse-breaking ensues.

Regina had been acting incredibly strange, even more so than normal. Annie did everything she was told exactly as she was told, but Regina still seemed uneasy. It was probably the traveling family that Regina had invited over. The boy and his father did her in – she had grown too attached to the child, Owen, and he had to leave at some point. On Annie’s to-do list today was visit Mr. Gold. Annie didn’t particularly look forward to the visit, but obeyed Regina’s odd request and entered the shop. She hadn’t interacted with Gold much, but her friends insisted he was awful.

“Does a closed sign mean nothing?” asked the man standing at the back counter of the shop.

Annie approached the counter slowly. “I know I’m here before the shop opens, but I’m here on city business.”

“And what does the city want?” he asked, smirking. 

“Regina wants… something,” she said, waving her arms like she wasn’t sure of exactly what Regina wanted.

“You’ll have to be more specific than that, dearie. And don’t waste my time,” he said, leaning forward and watching her with interest. This was one of the first times he could recall talking to the pretty brunette that Regina had running behind the scenes of her mayor-hood. Poor girl.

Annie blushed. “She said she wants a child. From you.”

He raised his eyebrows. “A child?”

Annie nodded, shrugging as she looked around the store.

“Well, tell Madame Mayor I am flattered, but uninterested in fathering her child,” he said, turning around to face the back wall of the shop.

“She doesn’t mean it like that,” said Annie, walking to stand against the counter. He turned to her, looking perplexed. 

“She wants to adopt a child,” said Annie.

“You could’ve started with that,” said Mr. Gold, giving Annie a tight-lipped smile. She crossed her arms, continuing not to meet his gaze. “I’ll look in to things. Tell her to talk to me directly next time.”

“Yes, Mr. Gold,” said Annie, turning to leave quickly. 

Mr. Gold thought Annie French was one of the quietest but interesting townspeople. She was very quiet and obedient, but given the chance she could be very brave. Not many people would just stroll in to his shop early and demand to speak with him. 

\--

Annie was making pancakes when Ruby joined her in the kitchen, recounting the entire story about Kathryn and Mary Margaret and Regina and Gold. Ruby shuddered as she described working with Emma, finding a heart in the forest. Annie was distracted, nodding every now and then as she stirred the mix.

“Annie, you’re acting like you don’t think this is the craziest thing to ever happen,” said Ruby, joining Annie at the counter.

Annie shrugged. “I’ve just had this weird feeling lately, this kind of… empty feeling. Nothing excites me.”

Ruby pursed her lips and rubbed her friend’s shoulder. “Maybe you should make an appointment with Archie. You might be depressed – because of the wedding stuff,” she whispered. 

Annie turned the griddle on, pouring her first pancakes. “I don’t think I have depression,” she said firmly. 

“Annie, please. You sleep all day, and when you’re not sleeping, you’re reading. You don’t socialize. You don’t leave your room unless Regina calls. I understand that you’re upset, but I miss my old friend,” said Ruby, trying to get across to her.

Shrugging again, Annie flipped the pancakes. “Do you want one of these? I’ve gotta be somewhere soon.”

Ruby sighed and helped Annie set the table for their breakfast. As they began to eat at the table, Annie was quiet. It looked like she was thinking about something fairly serious. “Is there something you want to talk about, Annes?” asked Ruby hopefully.

Annie shifted. “I was just… what do you think about Mr. Gold?”

It was a foolish question to ask, because Ruby’s family’s hotel and restaurant were both owned by Gold. He owned the whole town. Despite the whispered accusations against Gold, Annie had gone to him in confidence and he handled her situation with Gabriel with care and attentiveness. It was almost like he worried about her, the man who only seemed to worry about himself. She hadn’t visited him since the day she told him about Gabriel, but he was caught up with the town drama and she didn’t want to bother him. He was constantly on her mind, though, and she was actively trying to figure out how and where she could talk to him again. 

Ruby looked disgusted. “Gold? You know I think he’s the scum of the Earth. Why are you thinking about him? Did he do something to you?”

Annie sighed. “No. He’s done nothing at all. Just thinking.” They ate the rest of the meal in silence, before Annie said she had to go somewhere. A key had shown up in her mailbox the post office, and she intended to find out if it went where it said it went.

\--  
She had let Ruby assume she was going to work when she left her friend’s company. Annie didn’t like how Ruby insisted she need help. Maybe she did, though, thinking about the past few weeks of her life. Maybe Dr. Hopper could talk to her about the relationship she just left. Deep down, Annie had known it was abusive, but she could never bring her to say it out loud. She felt guilty, somehow, like Gabriel’s drinking and the emotional and physical wounds it caused were her fault. If she was a better person in some way, he wouldn’t have hurt her like he had. It was why she did everything Regina asked, why she let her friends decide their weekend plans and any other issue that might arise. If she was pliable enough, she might not break.

Annie approached the library. It didn’t look like anyone had entered in years, but the key had shown up in her mailbox and she couldn’t resist. Opening the door slowly, she gasped as she entered the building. The dust was evident, and plastic covered the shelves of books – but, oh, how many books there were! Annie went to the closest cart, running her fingers over the hardback covers that had been abandoned however many years ago. The low tables were covered in dust, but Annie used her arm to uncover one, coughing as the particles blew up and danced in the sun beams streaming in from the slats of the boarded-up windows. 

Annie could’ve spent all day roaming the aisles, uncovering the signs directing the past patrons from “childrens’” to “science fiction” to “romance”. As she rounded the corner to the circulation desk, the front door opened. Annie jumped, unsure of who would enter. Maybe Regina used this for something? 

Mr. Gold entered. He gave Annie a brief smile. “I’m glad you got what I left you,” he said, joining her by the circulation desk.

“How did you know I wanted to see the library?”

He shrugged. “I remember you asked about it.”

She gasped, remembering that day. “That was ages ago – that was-”, she said, growing frustrated as she couldn’t remember the year she and Gabriel had stopped outside the library. Annie was getting irritated by how hazy her memories were, how every day seemed to run the same routine. 

Mr. Gold reached for her shoulder, squeezing it gently. “It’s okay Belle- Annie. Annabelle,” he said, genuine. “I wanted you to see it. I bet I could convince Regina to let you open it back up.”

“Really?” whispered Annie, turning to admire the endless shelves again.

He gave her a knowing smile. “Yeah. I’ve got a bit of pull with the mayor. Why don’t you take me on a tour?” he asked.

Annie nodded, guiding him through the shelves and pointing out the study room, the circulation desk, the labeled sections, and finally back to the front entrance. 

“May we sit on our library and yet be in all corners of the Earth,” mused Mr. Gold. When Annie gave him a curious look, he shrugged. “It’s a quote.”

Annie checked her phone. No messages from Regina yet. She sat at one of the least-dusty tables, beckoning for Mr. Gold to join her. He looked hesitant, but sat at the same table. Annie noted he didn’t pick the seat closest to her, but that was okay. It was just the two of them.

“I wanted, to, uh, thank you again,” she began. “Really.”

He nodded. “It was nothing, dear…”

“It was not “nothing”!” she insisted, “You really helped me when I was in a bad situation. I wish I could repay you somehow.”

“You don’t have to, Annie. Don’t worry. You deserve so much better than what Gabriel was to you. It’s just human decency,” he said, watching her. Annie felt different under his gaze, like he knew something about her that she didn’t. They grew silent, both looking around the library.

Annie bit her lip. “Is it always so awful?”

He looked over at her. “Beg your pardon?”

“Love. Is it always so awful?”

When Mr. Gold didn’t reply, Annie continued. “I thought I loved Gabriel, really. Now that we’re not together, I feel empty. Like a stranger in my own body. You said you’ve been in love before. Twice. Does it ever work out like it does in my books? Because lately, everything seems to be terrible,” she finished, crossing her arms around herself protectively.

Mr. Gold’s eyes widened, and he leaned closer to her. “No, Annie, I’m sure it’s not always terrible. I think you’ll get a happy ending. Really. You’re very smart, very kind, very capable, and very beautiful. You’ll find someone.”

Annie moved her hand to cover Mr. Gold’s. That was the most intimate thing he’d ever said to her. He had even called her beautiful, and she didn’t know how to react other than to thank him. He seemed to be startled by her touch, his eyes focused on her hand, but she didn’t move it. “I think you will, too, Mr. Gold,” she whispered.

He smiled. “My time has passed, Annie. I don’t deserve anyone special. I’m not special. I’m just a bitter old man.”

She smiled in return. “You’re not old, and you’re not bitter. You’re really very kind, and I don’t know why you think you’re not special.”

He shrugged, and was about to reply when Annie’s phone buzzed. She groaned. “It’s Regina,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I have to go take Henry to Grace’s house.”

Mr. Gold nodded, walking out the door with her. If anyone noticed Annabelle French and Mr. Gold walking together until they reached his shop, they didn’t comment loud enough for either of them to be bothered.

Entering the shop, Rumplestiltskin was nearly shaking. Annie was growing too close to Mr. Gold for comfort. If she kissed him, would it be True Love’s Kiss again? Did she still love him? Belle’s spirit was growing restless in Annie, he could clearly tell. Everyone in Storybrooke was growing restless. Soon enough, he would retrieve the potion he had carefully hidden and return to his old power and find his son. Belle was never supposed to be in the picture, but she was here. He had meant what he said – he wanted Belle to find someone new, someone more deserving of her attention than him. She deserved a happy ending. He just wanted to make peace with his boy. If Belle did decide to stay with him… that was an option that was too hard to think about. Belle was too lovely and too good for him, but if by some miracle she wanted to be with him, it might be like a happy ending. Could a villain get a happy ending?

He hadn’t gone to the library with the intention of seeing her. He had left her the keys, hoping it would give her a dose of sunshine after weeks of rain in her life. Rumplestiltskin was going to check on an old accomplice hidden below the library. Seeing Annie there was a coincidence, but he’d have to go back sooner rather than later. 

\--  
Annie photocopied documents in the mayor’s home office until it was time to pick Henry up from Grace’s house. She crept out when she smelled something yummy, seeing Regina was baking apple turnovers.

“Baking day, Ms. Mills?” asked Annie, admiring the crisped pastry.

“Yes,” said Regina, swatting Annie’s hand away, “but not for you. It’s for Ms. Swan.”

“Why are you baking for Emma? Don’t you hate her?” said Annie, feeling brave enough to question her employer. She knew enough about the town drama to know that Emma and Regina clashed like titans. 

Regina raised an eyebrow. “It’s a going-away present, of course.”

So she had succeeded in getting Emma to leave town. Annie checked the time, and realized it was time for her to go, too. Grabbing her purse, she ran out of the mayor’s house and to her car. Henry was very chatty when she picked him up, going on again about fairytales. “Annie?” he asked, stopping his theory on Archie being Jiminy Cricket.

“Henry?” she answered.

“Your full name is Annabelle, right?”

“Yes.”

“Does anyone ever just call you Belle?”

Annie thought. “No, nobody has ever just called me Belle. Why?” Nobody until Mr. Gold had in the library today, she realized. That must be a peculiar coincidence. 

She checked her rearview mirror and saw Henry grin at her. “I’ve figured it out,” he said. 

“Figured what out, Henry?” she asked, playing along. Henry was a sweet kid, and she had grown to adore him as she watched him grow up. 

He sounded smug as he replied, “You’re Belle, from Beauty & the Beast. You love books, you’re pretty, and you’re nice.”

Annie laughed. “I don’t think those three things make me a fairy tale princess, Henry.”

“You just don’t believe it. You’ll see.”

“Let’s say,” said Annie, interested in Henry’s theory, “I am Belle. Who’s my beast?”

Henry stilled. “You’re not gonna like it.”

“Tell me,” she urged, pulling in to the mayor’s driveway.

“Mr. Gold is the beast. Nobody likes him, but he’s actually nice when I talk to him.”

Annie could’ve choked on her own spit – she and Mr. Gold were a fairytale couple to Henry? That had too many implications to think about as she drove. Deciding not to play along any further, she changed the subject. “Your mom was baking today. Apple turnovers. Maybe she’ll let have one left for you after she talks to Emma.”

Henry blanched. “You let my mom cook with apples? She’s poisoning her! She’s poisoning Emma!” he yelled, strapping his seatbelt back up. “We have to go, Annie!”

“Henry-” she began, but his cries got louder and louder. She buckled herself back in, deciding to let Henry visit his birth mother. She couldn’t let Regina see him in hysterics like this; she would blame Annie for letting him go on about fairytales again. They headed for Mary Margaret’s apartment, where Emma was staying.

They knocked on the door. Emma answered, looking at them curiously. “Hey kid. Hey Annie.” Emma welcomed them in to the flat, and they all sat awkwardly around the kitchen table.

“Why do you have your bags packed? Did you get your own place?” said Henry, seeing the duffel bag and boxes next to the door.

“Kid,” began Emma, looking at Annie cautiously, “I didn’t want to tell you this now, but since you’re visiting… I’m leaving. I’m leaving town.”

“You’re leaving Storybrooke?” Henry asked, his voice barely a whisper.

Emma nodded. “I talked to Regina. I’ll still visit you, but not… not every day.”

Henry was tearing up, and Annie rubbed his back. “It’s okay, Henry, it’s an adult issue. They’re figuring it out.”

Emma gave Annie a tight-lipped smile. “It’s the best choice, Henry. When I fight Regina, people get hurt.”

The boy was clearly distraught. “You can’t trust her! You can’t! Don’t let her scare you, you’re a hero,” Henry cried, moving to sit next to Emma. “All heroes have low points before they win. You can still win, Emma,” he insisted.

Annie realized he was going on about fairytales again, not seeing the difference between them and the reality they were actually living in. The poor kid felt so unloved he could no longer identify what was real and what wasn’t. Annie hoped that he felt love for her, but she had always only been allowed to be half-involved with his life, not his full caretaker. If she could go back and keep a closer eye on him, she would have. She would’ve made sure he couldn’t have run away to find Emma. Since Emma had arrived, everything in town had changed. 

Emma was growing desperate; gently pushing Henry’s overgrown hair out of his eyes. “Henry – this isn’t a story, this is reality,” she said, her voice cracking as she began to cry. “Things have to change. You can’t skip school, you can’t run away, and you can’t believe in curses.”

Henry looked away from Emma. “You really don’t believe,” he said quietly.

“I made a deal with Regina, and I could tell she was telling the truth. She’s going to take really good care of you,” Emma persisted.

“You know, she wants you dead,” said Henry, rising and walking to the counter where the apple turnover sat. “You’re the only one who can stop her.”

“Henry, no,” said Emma, making eye contact with Annie. They both got up and walked over to where Henry was staring at the dessert.

“My mom gave this to you?” he asked, poking it.

“Yes,” said Emma. 

“I saw her make them, Henry, it’s just an apple turnover,” said Annie. This whole situation was a mistake. She shouldn’t have brought him here; it was pushing him over the edge.

“Apple!” yelled Henry. “Don’t you see? It’s poison!” Annie made the connection in her head. If Regina was the Evil Queen, she would use an apple to poison Snow White. Or in this case, Emma Swan.

“Henry, Regina’s not poisoning me,” said Emma, picking up the turnover. “We just talked. Why would she poison me when she knows I’m leaving?”

Henry swiped the turnover from Emma’s hand. “Because as long as you’re alive, you’re a threat to the curse.”

Annie stepped in, “Henry, you’ve got to stop thinking like this.”

Emma agreed, and Henry was looking between both women with a bewildered look. He stopped. “Fine. I’ll prove it to you. You guys might not believe in the curse, or in me, but I believe in you.”

Henry took a small bite of the turnover. Annie and Emma watched him for a moment, and then came to their senses. Despite the tension in the room, he was fine.

“See? Nothing happened. You’re fine. Do you want some ice cream?” said Emma sarcastically, moving to her fridge. 

Annie and Emma both jumped when Henry hit the floor, unconscious.  
\---  
Getting to the hospital was a blur. Annie drove, clutching the steering wheel, as Emma sat with Henry in the backseat, shaking him gently and talking to him, praying out loud to any god who might be listening that he would wake up. When they arrived, Henry was placed in a stretcher with Annie on one side and Emma on the other. It occurred to Annie that she should call Regina. Stepping out of the hospital room where Emma was yelling frantically at Doctor Whale, she placed the call.

“Henry’s in the hospital,” she said, her voice shaking.

“What?” shrieked Regina, “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” said Annie, truthfully. “I took him to visit Emma, and he ate some turnover, and…”

The line went dead. Regina wasn’t listening anymore. Annie hoped it meant she had dropped her phone to run to the hospital.

Minutes later, Regina rushed in. Emma saw her and shoved her out the door, her eyes vengeful. Annie didn’t know her place in all of this. After a moment behind locked doors, Emma and Regina rushed passed her, muttering something about having to see Mr. Gold. Annie had no idea how Mr. Gold had anything to do with Henry’s sudden illness. Annie needed company, someone to watch Henry with her. She briefly thought about calling Ruby, but instead she called Mary Margaret, the boy’s teacher and one of her closest friends. They hadn’t talked much since Annie had cancelled her wedding, and Annie knew she had plenty of personal drama, but she would know what to do. Mary Margaret arrived, joining Belle inside the room. She wrapped Annie in a hug, a wordless display of the strength of their friendship. Mary Margaret sat in the chair next to Henry’s bed, where he was hooked to wires and machines that monitored his vitals. Reaching for Henry’s storybook, which Emma had brought in with them, Mary Margaret read him the story of Snow White and Prince Charming.

Annie listened intently, gently stroking Henry’s hand and watching the small rise and fall of his bare chest. “Mary Margaret,” she said softly, “could you read Beauty & the Beast? We were just talking about it before…this. You know how he thinks you’re Snow White?”

Mary Margaret smiled softly. “Are you Belle from Beauty & the Beast?”

“Yeah. Stupid, right?”

“Well, you do like books, and it appears like you almost married a beast.” People in town had heard about Emma Swan taking Gabriel in on charges of disturbing the peace and battery through verbal harassment. Annie had given no comment, but townspeople assumed. 

“He doesn’t think Gabriel’s the beast,” Annie revealed, blushing. 

“Then who?” said Mary Margaret, looking curious.

“Mr. Gold,” said Annie, blushing, “It’s silly.”

Mary Margaret nodded without responding, turning the book’s pages and starting the fairytale in her most hope-filled of voices. The story resonated with Annie, and she couldn’t help but picture herself and Mr. Gold as the main characters. If only Henry had been right, she could just kiss the secretive Mr. Gold and reveal her handsome prince. As Mary Margaret finished with a flourishing movement and a “happily ever after”, Henry’s monitors began to beep and blink. Doctor Whale rushed in, several nurses behind him.

“What’s going on?” asked Annie, holding Henry’s hand as the numbers on the screen spiked.

“Get her out of here. Get both of them out of here,” said Whale, motioning to the two women. A nurse ushered them outside of the room. They heard commotion, then the machine flat-lined. Annie had watched enough television shows to know what had happened. She gasped and began to weep. Mary Margaret gathered her in to her arms, and the two women cried softly on to each other shoulders until someone tapped Annie’s shoulder.

Jefferson stood beside them, wearing an odd smile. He had always seemed off to Annie, making odd comments to her about her appearance or a book she was reading. He lived in an elusive mansion, and on her random visit there for Regina she always thought it was too big a house for one man. He leaned over to Annie, and whispered, “Mr. Gold wants to see you.”

Annie frowned. Was Jefferson doing Gold’s bidding now? Why did he want to see her? She exchanged a glance with Mary Margaret, breaking from their tight embrace. She walked out of the hospital and towards Mr. Gold’s shop.

\--  
“Mr. Gold?” she called, opening the front door to the shop.

“I’m here, but the shop is closed,” came the voice from the back room.

She stepped in, seeing him fumbling with something purple and egg-shaped.

“Jefferson, uh, said you wanted to see me.”

Mr. Gold looked perplexed. “I didn’t ask him to do that,” he said, focusing back on the mysterious object.

She stepped closer to him, sniffling. “Henry – uh, I think Henry just died,” she whispered, the words hard to say. 

He looked up at her sharply. “I’m sure the boy is fine.”

“No, no, I heard the machines stop. There wasn’t a heartbeat. I was there, with him, in his last moments… we read him a fairytale,” she said, her voice breaking along with her heart. Why wasn’t he empathizing with her? He didn’t seem surprised or upset. 

Gold gave a tight smile. “I’m sure he’ll be okay,” he repeated. “Do you want to go somewhere with me, Annie?” 

This day was getting stranger and stranger, but she might as well. Everything seemed numb. Her mind, her legs, her hands. Nothing seemed real anymore. She nodded at Mr. Gold, and they headed out of the shop and towards the woods. Annie noticed he was still carrying the egg. They had gotten pretty far in to the forest when Annie felt like the wind got knocked out of her. 

She paused. She looked around at her surroundings. Where was she? Who was she? Her name wasn’t Annie, it was Belle. She had been locked up by Regina, cursed to The Land Without Magic as Annie, a spineless personal assistant trapped in an abusive relationship. Annie was weak where Belle was strong. Belle held two memories in her mind, two lives. Belle looked ahead at the man who was still walking in front of her – Mr. Gold. Rumplestiltskin. She loved him. She had been fighting for him. Belle felt like she could sense things again, like she was seeing in color for the first time in decades. 

“Wait,” said Belle, loudly enough to catch his attention.

“We’re almost there,” he said, turning to look at her.

“Rumplestiltskin, wait. I remember. I love you.”

He approached her, swallowing her body in a hug that she never wanted to end. There were so many questions to ask him, so many things to say, but right now he was there and he was hers and they were together. They could figure it all out later.

“And I love you too,” he whispered. He had dropped the purple egg as they held each other, but separating from her, he picked it up again. He looked at Belle. “There’ll be time for that, though, later. I have to do something first.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Several pieces of dialogue were borrowed from Once Upon A Time. I have no right to them. I’m unsure if this is the last chapter or not - if anyone would be interested in this story continuing in to Season 2, please let me know.


End file.
